$293 million was seized and 5,811 arrests were made in a huge crackdown on scam and fraud by Interpol and law enforcement agencies in 97 countries.

Interpol’s Operation First Light 2026 spanned 97 countries and resulted in 5,811 arrests, $239 million seized and 31,014 bank accounts frozen.
Authorities analyzed 152,808 cases, identified 15,606 suspects and discovered scams ranging from BEC to money laundering, with victims exceeding 142,000 worldwide.
Notable raids included a fake Brazilian police station in Eswatini, cryptocurrency laundering in Thailand and scam centers in Palau, highlighting the scale and diversity of the crackdown.

Interpol and several national law enforcement agencies arrested more than 5,800 people and seized hundreds of millions of dollars in one of the largest cybercrime crackdowns to date.

In an announcement, Interpol said it began Operation First Light 2026 on January 15 and concluded it on April 30, 2026. After an “initial period” of intelligence gathering and sharing between partners, police forces from 97 countries and territories began raiding facilities, seizing digital equipment and cash, and arresting suspects.

In total, 5,811 people were arrested and $239 million in illicit assets were intercepted. During Operation First Light 2026, various police forces analyzed 152,808 cases, blocked 31,014 bank accounts and issued 99 Notices and Diffusions.

A replica of a police station.

In addition to the arrests, law enforcement also identified 15,606 suspects, which could lead to even more arrests in the coming months.

Interpol did not dismantle a single global operation here. The cases ranged from money laundering to scams and identity theft, business email compromise and more.

In a particularly brazen campaign, Eswatini police seized a “realistic replica of a Brazilian police station, complete with fake uniforms, signs and equipment.”

“Posing as the Brazilian Federal Police via video call, the scammers deceived their targets into believing they were victims of a crime, tricking them into transferring funds for their “custody,” which were then stolen,” Interpol explained. In this case, police arrested 82 people and confiscated 240 electronic devices.

Two people were arrested in Thailand, including a 20-year-old man who allegedly processed more than $122.5 million in various cryptocurrencies in 10 months. On the other hand, Palau authorities deported 22 people for their role in two connected scam centers that were carried out from hotels.

Interpol said that during the operation it identified more than 142,000 victims worldwide.